A massive winter storm dumped sleet, freezing rain and snow across much of the U.S. on January 25, leaving hundreds of thousands without power and halting air and road traffic. The storm affected areas from New Mexico and Texas to New England—a 2,000-mile stretch—making it unprecedented in geographic scope. About 213 million people were under winter weather warnings as of Sunday morning, the National Weather Service said.
The danger will persist for days as bitter cold behind the system prevents snow and ice from melting quickly, threatening to extend power outages and travel disruptions well into the coming week.
The meteorological system was “unique in the sense that it is so widespread,” said Allison Santorelli, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “It was affecting areas all the way from New Mexico, Texas, all the way into New England, so we’re talking like a 2,000-mile spread.”
Two distinct storm patterns
The National Weather Service warned of “catastrophic ice accumulation” from the Lower Mississippi Valley to the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast. Heavy snow fell from the Ohio Valley to the Northeast, with some areas receiving over a foot of snow along a 1,300-mile swath from Arkansas to New England.
The ice was particularly devastating across the South. In Mississippi, the ice storm was the worst the state had experienced since 1994. Governor Tate Reeves said the state deployed its largest-ever amount of ice-melting chemicals—200,000 gallons—plus salt and sand on roads. He urged residents not to drive unless absolutely necessary.
“May God have mercy on Corinth, MS! … The sound of the trees snapping, exploding & falling through the night have been unnerving to say the least,” wrote Kathy Ragan, a Corinth resident, on Facebook.
Power outages and flight cancellations
The storm halted air and road traffic. Some 12,000 flights were canceled on January 25, and nearly 20,000 were delayed, according to FlightAware. Airports in Philadelphia, Washington, Baltimore, North Carolina, New York and New Jersey were among those affected.
In Nashville, Tennessee, Jami Joe, 41, feared her electricity might not last as ice-heavy limbs from oak and pecan trees continued to crash around her house. “It’s only a matter of time if a limb strikes a power line,” she said.
On roads, conditions were treacherous. Josh Martin said he and his wife were “locked in” at their home on a steep hill in Columbia, Tennessee. “Getting in and out of the neighborhood is not an option,” Martin said. “I can get down because gravity will take me, but I could not get back up.”
Deaths and emergency response
At least five people who died were found outside in New York City as temperatures plunged, said Mayor Zohran Mamdani, though the cause of their deaths remained under investigation. Two men died of hypothermia related to the storm in Caddo Parish, Louisiana, according to the state health department.
The federal government mobilized to assist. President Donald Trump approved emergency declarations for at least a dozen states by Saturday, according to reporting from the Associated Press. The Federal Emergency Management Agency had rescue teams and supplies in numerous states, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said.
Schools and universities across the affected areas announced that classes would be canceled or held remotely. In Oxford, Mississippi, utility crews were pulled from roads during overnight hours as conditions worsened. “Due to life-threatening conditions, Oxford Utilities has made the difficult decision to pull our crews off the road for the night,” the utility company posted on Facebook. “Trees are actively snapping and falling around our linemen while they are in the bucket trucks.”
Prolonged danger from bitter cold
The extreme cold will prevent quick recovery. “Behind the storm it’s just going to get bitterly cold across basically the entirety of the eastern two-thirds of the nation, east of the Rockies,” the National Weather Service meteorologist Santorelli warned. That means ice and snow will remain on roads and infrastructure for extended periods, complicating recovery efforts and extending the risks to utilities trying to restore power.
In Georgia, the Cherokee County Sheriff’s office indicated severe conditions by noting that the Waffle House restaurant chain—which operates under a commitment to stay open during disasters—had closed locations. “You know it’s bad when Waffle House is closed!!!” the office posted on Facebook.